Phone-hacking scandal: three cheers for Vodafone

The way we were … a 2002-era handset with Vodafone. Photograph: Ian Waldie/Getty Images

The latest twist in the phone-hacking scandal reminds Monkey of a Shaftas award ceremony held at London's Century Club in 2002. The biggest cheers of the night went to Vodafone, which was sponsoring the awards celebrating the worst flyers, showbiz interviews and cock-ups of Fleet Street. The representatives from Vodafone who were attending the awards thought the hacks in the audience were cheering because of the phone company's sponsorship. Alas no. The then Bizarre editor, Dominic Mohan, went on to thank "Vodafone's lack of security" for the showbusiness exclusives of his rival, the Daily Mirror. Cue nonplussed looks on the Vodafone bigwigs' faces. Mohan was joking about the Mirror, but many present knew about Vodafone's default number and that some were taking advantage of it.